Jacqueline Sturdivant, left, and Kate Triggiano. (Candidate and redbankgreen photos. Click to enlarge.)

By JOHN T. WARD

Political newcomer Jacqueline Sturdivant outpolled two opponents to win one of two open seats on the Red Bank council Tuesday night.

Incumbent Kate Triggiano won the other one, with independent candidate Sue Viscomi squeezed out for the second time in three years.

As of 10:30 p.m., with all nine districts reporting, the Monmouth County Clerk’s website showed Sturdivant on top with 1,514 votes, or 39.9 percent of the total, followed by Triggiano, with 1,387 votes, or 36.5 percent.

Viscomi, a member of the borough school board, drew 865 votes, or 22.8 percent. She ran for council in 2018 and finished last in a five-way race won by Triggiano and fellow Democrat Hazim Yassin.

For the second year in a row, no Republicans ran for office in the general election. When the municipal government reorganizes January 1, Democrats will again hold all six council seats, with a Democrat, Mayor Pasquale Menna, at the helm.

The race pitted Triggiano against fellow Democrat Sturdivant, who ran with the backing of the local party, headed by Councilman Ed Zipprich.

Triggiano and Zipprich have been at odds often during council meetings over the past 18 months or so. Spurned by the local party, Triggiano and Yassin obtained support for second term bids in the June primary from Monmouth County Democrats.

Sturdivant knocked Yassin out of the race with her primary victory.

In the closing days of the general election, the acrimony between the borough and county organizations went public.

If you value the news coverage provided by redbankgreen, please become a financial supporter for as little as $1 per month. Click here to set your own level of monthly or annual contribution.